RoR: Forum

At the end of the article you argue for (inter alia) "non-coercion to the point of infinity". Is this, then, an argument in favor of anarcho-libertarianism?

Post 1

Thursday, November 7, 2002 - 1:18am

Well said, Andre. Here in New Zealand, the obsession with economics - a very dull & rather obvious discipline whose most useful function is to keep limited minds amused - has set back the cause of freedom enormously. For a while we were over-run by Hayekians, who had zero interest in, or understanding of, freedom - & a fetish about "efficiency." They gave us higher taxes & more regulation that were then depicted by socialists as "free market reforms." A disaster, whose whirlwind we continue to reap. No, I'm not positing a freedom/efficiency dichotomy; I'm saying, let's get the order right. And let's abandon this terminally tedious fatal conceit of economists - that theirs is the fundamental discipline. It most certainly is not.

Post 2

Friday, November 8, 2002 - 9:33pm

Ah, here goes Mr Perigo peddling his economist/passion dichotomy again. For several years now I have been attempting to convince Lindsay of the joys of economics, but alas, my total failure is as clearly evident here as ever.

Nevertheless there are at least three valid roles I can identify for otherwise useless economists:

1. To convince the world of the equivalence of freedom and efficiency. (Theoreticians)

2. To work out methods of privatisation and the creation of property rights in a way that causes minimum disruption. (Temporary bureaucrats)

3. As useful :-) participants in the free market. (Practitioners).

Lindsay has three issues with these people: the arrogance of the first type, the errors of both the first and second types, and the dullness of all three types.

He's right on the first two issues, but sadly wrong on the third!

Post 3

Tuesday, November 19, 2002 - 12:22pm

To Michael Marcus I say that MY political paradigm of "no taxation or regulation" is slightly different from -- and seemingly an extension/improvement upon -- Rand's political paradigm of "no force or fraud." But I still generally favor a strong central government -- just one which is entirely reactive and defensive.

Many thanks to Lindsay for his comments. I would add that not only do today's political liberals overfocus on economics -- as a kind of low, primitive, vulgar appeal to greed -- but they also overemphasize ~competition~, when in fact fully half of the freedom equation involves ~cooperation~.

As for Tim Sturm making economics a joyous subject: good luck! This is an important job -- but it seems none too easy to me.

--Andre Z'

Post 4

Thursday, September 1, 2005 - 1:58pm